sex and minors?

I heard that in the film, the 12-yr-old boy has sex with a prostitute. I'm just wondering how it's portrayed, considering the fact that he's still a kid. I remember how disturbed I was (for a long time) by the scene in Europa Europa! where the main character has sex with a much much older woman who comes on to him in a train car...and in that film, the kid is actually more like 16 or 17 (quite different than a 12-yr-old, although still a kid), and while the situation wasn't exactly what some people see as rape as it was supposedly 'consensual,' it was made clear that the woman was essentially preying on him (I would argue that it was still a kind of molestation). And while age 16 isn't the same thing as age 10, I think most advocates against child sexual abuse agree that even if a minor agrees to sex (or in the case of this 12 yr-old, initiates it), it's still molestation because the adult has taken advantage of the situation by choice, and the child is usually not fully aware of their sexuality (or their power of choice) or even the repercussions of sex. Yet as far as I've seen, there's been no controversy about this part of the plot, and it sounds like it's actually viewed as a positive thing (the boy comes of age and has a sexual awakening with a kind prostitute! yay!), which I really can't understand. Of course, I do realize that the fact that the woman is a prostitute makes it seem like less of a 'choice'--although I also heard that the way the prostitutes are portrayed is that they all seem to 'love' their work...which is pretty much far from reality (at least considering what I've heard directly from sex workers), and that these women don't have pimps who would take away their power of choice. Anyway, I'd appreciate any more info about this scene and what the context is. I'd like to see the film and am wondering whether I can handle the scene or not. Thanks!